JIMCO RACING SILVER STATE 300

from DIRT VENTURE Q2 2022

IN THE KNOW - New Products You’ll Want to Check Out

The Best In The Desert Jimco Silver State 300 presented by MAXXIS brought everyone together for 300 miles of incredible terrain in remote South Eastern Nevada. The sixth Best In The Desert event of 2022, it was the second time the cars and trucks lined up to race this season. The motorcycles, quads, and UTVs have been running separate races so far. The long, spread out course near Caliente would provide the space needed to run all classes at the same event. The Silver State 300 includes features not found on most desert courses. It’s Nevada, so there are plenty of mountains, big valleys with dry lakes, and silt beds to contend with, but the mountains are steep, and covered in juniper trees. The roads are more like trails through the mountains. They are a tight twisty maze that challenges the skill of drivers and riders. Navigators not only have to keep their drivers on course, but also keep their equilibrium as they look at the GPS on the equivalent of an intense roller coaster ride. Probably the most unique features on the course are the fl owing streams. Many competitors have had their race come to an end at the water crossings. The depth can be tricky to judge, and it’s just not something they typically have to contend with. Typical desert racing preparation does not include a snorkel.

Story by Mike Ingalsbee Photo by Trent Noble

Because of the remoteness of the course, registration, tech inspection, contingency, and qualifying all took place at the Primm Valley Resort & Casino outside Las Vegas; there simply are not enough hotel rooms in the race area to house everyone. The largest town around is Caliente which has a population of less than a thousand. I think there are more cows than people in the area. That’s another thing to be avoided on race day; the free range cattle. That fancy red riding gear you’re decked out in might be seen as an invitation to a grumpy bull. The bikes would be staged on the starting line by current points standings, and classes 1000, 6100, 6200, 7200, 1500 & Trick Truck would qualify for starting positions on Friday. That’s when the cat was let out of the bag as they say. UTV racers Bruce Binnquist, and Mitch Guthrie Jr. had been working on a plan. They both entered their UTVs in Class 1500. That’s the unlimited open wheel class. They had asked the technical director beforehand if their cars would be legal, and the answer was yes; it is an unlimited class after all. It was a bold move as there were long fast sections of the course off the start, and they didn’t want the bigger, more powerful 6100 trucks to run them over

Bruce Binnquist surprised all of the unlimited cars and trucks during Time Trials by posting the fourth fastest time, only 8 seconds behind pole winner BJ Baldwin in his Trick Truck. Photo by Dirtfocus.com

Mitch Guthrie Jr. was the other Pro Trubo UTV who challenged the Unlimited Cars and Trick Trucks at Time Trials setting the 7th fastest time. Photo by Dirtfocus.com

in the dusty conditions that were surely going to arise. The idea was to use the intervals allowed between starts in the unlimited class to run in clean air out front. They would run wide open, and not let the trucks catch them. From the beginning when UTVs started racing they were somewhat looked down upon by the other fast classes. They called them Golf Karts, and sneered at them. At fi rst, it might have been a valid critique. They were small, and slow to be honest. Since racers got their hands on them, and thanks to the manufacturers having a horsepower war, they are now highly developed, and capable of triple digit speeds. Binnquist and Guthrie are two of the fastest, so it was going to be interesting. It set the event, and the internet abuzz.

TIME TRIALS

Results of qualifying had Trick Trucks in the top three. The veteran racer (it seems strange to call him that), BJ Baldwin was in the top spot, with Robert Johnston in the

In the combined Trick Truck and 1500 Class Time Trials, BJ Baldwin laid down the fastest time of the day to capture the pole starting position. Photo by Daniel Curiel Photographic

- Forum - Classifieds - Event Calendar - Results & Maps - Race Coverage - Feature Vehicles - Shop Tours - Online Store

RACE-DEZERT.COM - YOUR CONNECTION TO THE OFF ROAD RACING COMMUNITY

Justin “Bean” Smith put down the fastest lap for Class 6100. Photo by Justin Brown Photo

Chattanooga Whiskey truck second, and then defending champion Kyle Jergensen in the Brenthel AWD truck third. Fourth place was none other than Bruce Binnquist in his Geiser Brother’s built CanAm. Mitch Guthrie Jr. took the seventh spot in his Polaris Pro R. Cole Barbieri in a traditional 1500 car took the fi fth spot. Then Sterling Miller in a Trick Truck, Guthrie as mentioned, and the rest of the top ten were all Trick Trucks: Whetstone, Olliges, and Wacker. Class 6100 was led by Justin “Bean” Smith, Connor McMullen and Bear Nunley. The stage was set for the race the following morning.

The Class 1000 cars also qualifi ed for starting positions with Preston Brigman taking the top spot for Saturday’s race. Photo by Dirtfocus.com

Husqvarna’s Skyler Howes raced to the Open Pro and outright overall win. Photo by Dirt Nation

Jeremy Newton and Jeff Trulove took second Open Pro. Photo by Dirt Nation

THE MORNING SHIFT

The motorcycles lined up at 5:15 am which meant they had to get going early; it takes a couple hours just to reach the starting line from Las Vegas. Being fi rst off the line, at least they would have less silt to deal with. As more vehicles go over the ground, it begins to loosen up. It creates pockets of silt that are the consistency of baby powder. Depending on recent rains, the ground can start out hard packed, but by

David Broderick and Luke Reynolds grabbed the win in the Open Expert. Photo by Dirt Nation

Danny Cooper pulled off the Over 30 Class win. Photo by Dirt Nation the end of the day it’s 3 foot deep in powder. Despite having some hardpack, it still gets dusty. The water crossings can be refreshing, but getting wet can also cause a lot of discomfort. Soggy boots can cause blisters, and wet gear can steam you like a lobster in a boiling pot. For most, they would be too focused on going fast to be bothered. That was the case for Open Pro motorcycle and overall winner Skyler Howes. The Husqvarna Factory Racing rider completed the course in 5 hours and 12 minutes; beating the fastest

Jarrod Wheeler, Janten Reber and Treyden Beard teamed up to take the 300 Pro win. Photo by Dirt Nation

unlimited car class fi nisher by 10 minutes. He was followed by a pair of KTM riders, current Open Pro points leader Jeremy Newton, and Hayden Hintz. They also beat the cars and trucks on time. 4th overall bike was 1st place in Open Expert class, David Broderick on a Husqvarna. Open Pro Cory Skaggs rounded out the top 5 overall on a Honda. Other motorcycle racers of note include Danny Cooper fi nishing fi rst place in the Over 30 Class and seventh overall; Jarrod Wheeler earning the 399 Pro Class and fi nishing eighth overall; and Zach Meyers winning the Ironman Pro Class and fi nishing ninth overall. The quickest in the quad classes was Brett Greenhold who rode his Honda to the Quad Ironman Class win and fi nished a respectable twenty-second overall.

Zach Myers rode to the Ironman Pro victory. Photo by Dirt Nation

The team of Alan and Jason Romans was the Quad Expert winner and fi rst quad to fi nish. Photo by Dirt Nation

BJ Baldwin was fi rst off the line and stayed in front physically the entire race. However, lurking in the dust behind him were two racers on a mission to shake things up at the fi nish line. Photo by Jason Zindroski, HighRev Photography

THE SURPRISE ENDING

I’m certain BJ Baldwin has no trouble waking up in the morning thanks to his sponsor Black Rifl e Coff ee, but the 4 wheeled classes didn’t even leave the line until 11:00 am. Since they were running the course in the opposite direction this year, the fi rst part of the course was very fast. It was here that many thought the trucks would gobble up the UTVs, but it didn’t happen. The generous twominute gaps between cars at the start allowed the front runners to run in clean air; nothing was holding them back. Unfortunately for Kyle Jergensen, he suff ered down time in the early going. His team toughed it out, and got him back in the fi ght, but he was the last Trick Truck to fi nish after over nine hours on the course. Second off the line, Robert Johnston also had a problem; rolling the truck in a spot that was diffi cult to access. He recovered to fi nish fourth in class behind Steve Olliges, and Sterling Miller. Another top contender to have bad luck was Turbo UTV class competitor Phil Blurton. Blurton’s M.O. is to run away with it at the front of the pack. When his tracker showed zero miles per hour for an hour, you knew it was not good. He suff ered a rare DNF. DirtVenture 27

First overall for the four-wheel vehicles was former motocross racer Cole Barbieri in his Class 1500 unlimited car. This marked the fi rst time a car has won the overall in recent memory for the 4 wheel classes. Photo by Daniel Noble Photography

IT’S TIME TO UPGRADE YOUR RACE CAR.

(619) 596-3360 sales@jimcoracing.com JIMCORACING.COM

Mitch Guthrie Jr. turned in an incredible performance in his RZR Pro R to take 2nd overall, only 12 seconds behind Barbieri. Photo by Trent Noble

Despite his best eff orts, and even after crossing the fi nish line fi rst, BJ Baldwin did not win the overall. Instead he was beaten on corrected time. Two cars had a lower elapsed time than BJ’s, and they were only 12 seconds apart. First overall was Cole Barbieri in his Class 1500 unlimited car, the fi rst time a car has won the overall in recent memory, and even more surprising was Mitch Guthrie Jr. in second overall. Mitch was in contention for the overall until the fi nal miles of the race. The twisty sections through the mountains gave way to wide open plains where Barbieri’s car had the edge. While Guthrie could maintain 110 miles per hour or so in his Polaris, Barbieri’s big V8 was capable of at least 10 to

Preston Brigman captured the Class 1000 win and 6th overall. Photo by Jason Zindroski, HighRev Photography Justin “Bean” Smith battled to the 6100 Class win and 4th overall for four wheel vehicles. Photo by Jason Zindroski, HighRev Photography

Brent Fox fi nished three minutes behind “Bean” to take 2nd in Class 6100 Photo by Justin Brown Photo 20 miles per hour more on the top end. Both the 1500 class cars were able to maintain high speeds throughout the course. Barbieri said he was using the cutting brake, and still banging his rear wheels on the outside of every turn through the twisty stuff . Guthrie was surprised that the trucks never caught him, but said the split times were pretty much the same where the trucks should have been faster. What about Binnquist you may ask. He suff ered electrical problems, but is optimistic

Steve Olliges took the 2nd podium spot for the Trick Trucks and 12th overall. Photo by Daniel Curiel Photographic

because he thinks they fi nally have all the bugs worked out, and he’s looking forward to Vegas to Reno. Will the UTVs be allowed to run in 1500 going forward? We will have to stay tuned, but Mitch Guthrie Jr. doesn’t think so. “The 2 minute gaps up front allowed us to run our own pace in clean air,” said Mitch. “I think we could have similar results at Vegas to Reno, but I think Best In The Desert is working on a rule change to prevent this from happening again.” The Silver State 300 presented the perfect conditions to try out their scheme, but the safety factor needs to be addressed. The DirtVenture 35

UTVs are immensely outweighed by the big trucks, so it’s best to keep them separate as much as possible during a race. The UTVs may get even faster and start running up through the ranks to challenge for the overall, so things will get interesting. However, the big trucks and unlimited buggies will use their power and strength in the rough stuff to maintain their supremacy when it comes to overall wins. They aren’t going to just let the Golf Karts play through.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: MIKE INGALSBEE

Mike Ingalsbee has covered just about everything that burns fuel or throws dirt for over three dec-ades. His writing and photography has been published in books, magazines and on websites around the world. His work includes features, Interviews, race coverage, tech articles, web content, and advertising literature for commercial clients. He started as a crew member for off road racing teams, and then worked as a design engineer in the automotive aftermarket before becoming a full time journalist.